An apparatus for packaging the front frames of lcd modules

ABSTRACT

The present invention discloses an apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules, wherein the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules comprises a tray, the tray includes a first projection and a second projection formed therein, said first projection and said second projection are arranged at the four inner peripheral sides of the tray, said first projection is adapted to support at least two pieces of front frames in up-down direction, said second projection is adapted to define the positions of said at least two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction and in left-right direction. According to the present invention, the deformation of the front frames can be prevented; meanwhile the cost of packaging can be reduced.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules, and more particularly to an apparatus for packaging and transporting the front frames with large size and small thickness.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The front frame of LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) module tends to have a large size and small thickness. The length and width of this kind of front frames is large, while the thickness is small. In the period of packaging and transporting the front frames, the front frame is easy to deform, such that it becomes difficult to assemble it with backlight module.

As a traditional packaging method, the front frames are inserted vertically in the slots with buffer structures of cardboard box. However, the front frames (especially large size front frame for such as 42-inch LCD TV) are easy to deform in assembling process. As another traditional packaging method, each front frame is laid horizontally into a plastic tray. Although this method can prevent the deformation of the front frames, one plastic tray can only contain one front frame such that the cost of packaging is quite high.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules to solve the mentioned problem above.

The present invention is realized in such a way that: An apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules, wherein the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules comprises a tray, the tray includes a first projection and a second projection formed therein, said first projection and said second projection are arranged at the four inner peripheral sides of the tray, said first projection is adapted to support at least two pieces of front frames in up-down direction, said second projection is adapted to define the positions of said at least two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction and in left-right direction.

According to an embodiment disclosed herein, the height of said first projection is greater than or equal to the height of each front frame.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, the height of said second projection is greater than the height of said first projection.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, said first projection is nearer to the corner of the tray than said second projection.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, both the profile of the tray and the profile of the front frames are square-shaped.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, the tray includes at least one first projection and at least one second projection respectively at each side of the four inner peripheral sides of the tray.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, the tray includes at least two first projections and at least two second projections respectively at each side of four inner peripheral sides of the tray.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, the tray includes a bottom plate portion and a side plate portion surrounding the bottom plate portion, said first projection and said second projection are disposed on the bottom plate portion.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, the side plate portion includes an engaging protrusion at the top and an engaging recess at the bottom.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, the first projection is nearer to the side plate portion of the tray than the second projection in front-rear direction and in the left-right direction.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, the first projection are adapted to support two pieces of front frames in up-down direction, the second projections are adapted to define the positions of said two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction and in left-right direction, said two pieces of front frames consist of a first front frame and a second front frame.

According to another embodiment disclosed herein, both the first front frame and the second front frame include a horizontal plate and a vertical plate.

According to yet another embodiment disclosed herein, the first front frame is hooked on the top surface of the first projection in such a way that the horizontal plate of the first front frame is located above the vertical plate of the first front frame, the second front frame is stacked on the horizontal plate of the first front frame in such a way that the horizontal plate of the second front frame is located below the vertical plate of the second front frame.

According to the present invention, because said first projection is adapted to support at least two pieces of front frames in up-down direction, and said second projection is adapted to define the positions of said at least two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction and in left-right direction, the deformation of the front frames can be prevented, meanwhile the cost of packaging can be reduced.

For more clearly and easily understanding above content of the present invention, the following text will take a preferred embodiment of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings for detail description as follows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The drawings described herein are for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way.

FIG. 1 is a schematic top view of the tray of an apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a circled portion A in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic top view of the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules in FIG. 1, which shows that two pieces of front frames are stacked in the tray;

FIG. 4 is a schematic exploded perspective view of the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a circled portion B in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view of the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules in FIG. 4, which shows that two pieces of front frames are packaged in the tray;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a circled portion C in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-section view of the tray of an apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules according to another embodiment of the present invention, which shows that two trays are stacked vertically together; and

FIG. 9 is an enlarged view of a circled portion D in FIG. 8.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following detailed description of every embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings is used to exemplify a specific embodiment, which may be carried out in the present invention. Directional terms mentioned in the present invention, such as “top”, “bottom”, “front”, “rear”, “left”, “right”, “up”, “down”, “inside”, “outside”, “side” etc., are only used with reference to the orientation of the accompanying drawings. Therefore, the used directional terms are intended to illustrate, but not to limit, the present invention. Also the following description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, application, or uses.

In the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules according to the present invention, the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules may include one tray or more trays. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules include one tray 100, while in another embodiment shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules include a plurality of trays (only two trays i.e. tray 100 and tray 200 are shown) stacked together vertically. Tray 100 and tray 200 have same configuration. In such a way, trays can be engaged with each other vertically and form multiple tray layers for easy transportation.

In the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules, the tray 100 includes a first projection 110 and a second projection 120 formed therein. Said first projection 110 and said second projection 120 are arranged at the four inner peripheral sides of the tray 100. Said first projection 110 is adapted to support at least two pieces of front frames in up-down direction Z, and said second projection 120 is adapted to define the positions of said at least two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction Y and in left-right direction X. By this way, the DOF (degree-of-freedom) of motion of the front frames in front-rear direction Y and in left-right direction X are restricted by the first projection 110 and the second projection 120, the deformation of the front frames can be prevented, meanwhile the cost of packaging can be reduced.

As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 7, the tray 100 includes several first projections 110 and several second projections 120 respectively at each side of the four inner peripheral sides of the tray 100. Said first projection 110 is adapted to support two pieces of front frames, i.e. a first front frame 300 and a second front frame 400 in up-down direction Z, and said second projection 120 is adapted to define the positions of said two pieces of front frames, i.e. the first front frame 300 and the second front frame 400 in front-rear direction Y and in left-right direction X. The first front frame 300 and the second front frame 400 have the same structures.

As can be seen in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the height of said second projection 120 is greater than the height of said first projection 110. The height of said first projection 110 is greater than the height of the first front frame 300. It is apparent that the height of said first projection 110 may be equal to the height of the first front frame 300. As shown in FIG. 2, said second projection 120 is nearer to the corner of the tray 100 than said first projection 110. The distance D discussed below can clarify this relative position. It is apparent that said first projection 110 may be nearer to the corner of the tray 100 than said second projection 120 as needed. The first front frame 300 includes a horizontal plate 320 and a vertical plate 310. The second front frame 400 includes a horizontal plate 420 and a vertical plate 410. The first front frame 300 is hooked on the top surface of the first projection 110 in such a way that the horizontal plate 320 the first front frame 300 is located above the vertical plate 310 of the first front frame 300, the second front frame 400 is stacked on the horizontal plate 320 of the first front frame 300 in such a way that the horizontal plate 420 of the second front frame 400 is located below the vertical plate 410 of the second front frame 400. By this way, the first front frame 300 and the second front frame 400 can be reliably packaged; the deformation thereof in package and transportation can be avoided.

In the embodiment shown, the first projection 110 is nearer to the side plate portion 104 (it will be discussed hereinafter) of the tray 100 than the second projection 120 in front-rear direction Y and in the left-right direction X respectively. As shown in FIG. 2, the distance between the inner surface of the first front frame 300 and the inner surface the second front frame 400 is shown as distance D. the distance D is preferably equal to the width of the horizontal plate 320 of the first front frame 300, such that the first front frame 300 can be supported steady in up-down direction Z. In other embodiments, the distance D may be smaller slightly than the width of the horizontal plate 320 of the first front frame 300.

As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the profile of the tray 100 and the profile of the front frames 300, 400 are square-shaped. Moreover, the tray 100 includes several first projections 110 and several second projections 120 respectively at each side of four inner peripheral sides of the tray 100. In particular, the tray 100 is provided with four first projections 110 and three second projections 120 at the front side of the tray 100; there are two first projections 110 between two second projections 120. Likewise, the tray 100 is provided with four first projections 110 and three second projections 120 at the rear side of the tray 100; there are two first projections 110 between two second projections 120. The tray 100 is provided with two first projections 110 and two second projections 120 at the left side of the tray 100; there are two first projections 110 between two second projections 120. Likewise, the tray 100 is provided with two first projections 110 and two second projections 120 at the right side of the tray 100; there are two first projections 110 between two second projections 120. In fact, the tray 100 may include at least one first projection 110 and at least one second projection 120 respectively at each side of the four inner peripheral sides of the tray 100. It is obvious that the arrangement and amounts of the first projection 110 and the second projection 120 is not limited to embodiments provided herein. One of ordinary skills in the art can conceive more embodiments based on the present invention as needed.

As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 9, the tray 100 includes a bottom plate portion 102 and a side plate portion 104 surrounding the bottom plate portion 102, said first projection 110 and said second projection 120 are disposed on the bottom plate portion 102. As shown, said first projection 110 and said second projection 120 are chamfered blocks. The shapes and the configuration of said first projection 110 and said second projection 120 can be designed if necessary.

As shown in FIG. 8 to FIG. 9, the tray 200 includes a bottom plate portion 202 and a side plate portion 204 surrounding the bottom plate portion 202, the tray 200 and the tray 100 are same in shape as discussed. The side plate portion 104 of the tray 100 includes an engaging protrusion 106 at the top and an engaging recess 108 at the bottom. The side plate portion 204 of the tray 200 includes an engaging protrusion 206 at the top and an engaging recess 208 at the bottom. The engaging recess 108 is engaged with the engaging protrusion 206. In this way, trays with packaged front frames therein can be stacked in layers. Therefore, more front frames can be packaged and transported easily.

As shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, a stacking structure of the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules can be seen. In tray 100 and tray 200, two front frames are packaged respectively. As the same with the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 7, said first projection 110 is adapted to support two pieces of front frames in up-down direction Z, and said second projection 120 is adapted to define the positions of said two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction Y and in left-right direction X. The first front frame 300 includes a horizontal plate 320 and a vertical plate 310. The second front frame 400 includes a horizontal plate 420 and a vertical plate 410. The first front frame 300 is hooked on the top surface of the first projection 110 in such a way that the horizontal plate 320 the first front frame 300 is located above the vertical plate 310 of the first front frame 300, the second front frame 400 is stacked on the horizontal plate 320 of the first front frame 300 in such a way that the horizontal plate 420 of the second front frame 400 is located below the vertical plate 410 of the second front frame 400. According the stacking structure of the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, multiple trays with several front frames packaged therein can be stacked together and thus transported at the same time. Therefore, the cost of packaging is reduced, and the transportation capacity is improved.

Although in the embodiments shown in figures, said first projection 110 is adapted to support two pieces of front frames in up-down direction Z, and said second projection 120 is adapted to define the positions of said two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction Y and in left-right direction X, two or more first front frames 300 can be stacked together in the same position, two or more second front frames 400 also can be stacked together in the same position. One of ordinary skills in the art also can make all sorts of improvements and amendments within the principles of the present invention.

In short, the tray 100 includes a first projection 110 and a second projection 120 formed therein. Said first projection 110 and said second projection 120 are arranged at the four inner peripheral sides of the tray 100. Said first projection 110 is adapted to support at least two pieces of front frames in up-down direction Z, and said second projection 120 is adapted to define (i.e. to restrict) the positions of said at least two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction Y and in left-right direction X. The tray may be plastic tray. By this way, the DOF (degree-of-freedom) of motion of the front frames in front-rear direction Y and in left-right direction X are restricted by the first projection 110 and the second projection 120, the deformation of the front frames can be prevented, meanwhile the cost of packaging can be reduced, and the transportation capacity is improved. Moreover, the present invention can also be applied to other types of frame in L shape besides the front frames of LCD modules.

While the present invention has been described with reference to certain embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the scope of the present invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the present invention without departing from its scope. Therefore, it is intended that the present invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed, but that the present invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules, wherein the apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules comprises a tray, the tray includes a first projection and a second projection formed therein, said first projection and said second projection are arranged at the four inner peripheral sides of the tray, said first projection is adapted to support at least two pieces of front frames in up-down direction, said second projection is adapted to define the positions of said at least two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction and in left-right direction.
 2. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 1, wherein the height of said first projection is greater than or equal to the height of each front frame.
 3. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 1, wherein the height of said second projection is greater than the height of said first projection.
 4. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 1, wherein said first projection is nearer to the corner of the tray than said second projection.
 5. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 1, wherein both the profile of the tray and the profile of the front frames are square-shaped.
 6. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 1, wherein the tray includes at least one first projection and at least one second projection respectively at each side of the four inner peripheral sides of the tray.
 7. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 1, wherein the tray includes at least two first projections and at least two second projections respectively at each side of four inner peripheral sides of the tray.
 8. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 1, wherein the tray includes a bottom plate portion and a side plate portion surrounding the bottom plate portion, said first projection and said second projection are disposed on the bottom plate portion.
 9. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 8, wherein the side plate portion includes an engaging protrusion at the top and an engaging recess at the bottom.
 10. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 8, wherein the first projection is nearer to the side plate portion of the tray than the second projection in front-rear direction and in the left-right direction.
 11. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 8, wherein the first projection are adapted to support two pieces of front frames in up-down direction, the second projections are adapted to define the positions of said two pieces of front frames in front-rear direction and in left-right direction, said two pieces of front frames consist of a first front frame and a second front frame.
 12. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 11, wherein both the first front frame and the second front frame include a horizontal plate and a vertical plate.
 13. The apparatus for packaging the front frames of LCD modules of claim 12, wherein the first front frame is hooked on the top surface of the first projection in such a way that the horizontal plate of the first front frame is located above the vertical plate of the first front frame, the second front frame is stacked on the horizontal plate of the first front frame in such a way that the horizontal plate of the second front frame is located below the vertical plate of the second front frame. 